The
petition of sundrey
inhabitants of Clinch River, Moccasin Creek, Powells
Valley, and
others,
citizens of Washington County humbly represent that
your petitioners
are
situate from the line of Montgomery as it crosses near
the source of
Clinch
River, down the same eighty miles; thence to the
extreme settlements of
Powells Valley forty more.
The greatest
proportion
of your petitioners have to travel from twenty-five to
fifty miles and
some, eighty to a hundred; moreover are generally
interrupted by Clinch
Mountain and the north branch of the Holstein river;
the former
affording
very difficult passes; the latter much danger and
difficulty in
crossing
it in spring and after considerable rain. Contiguous
to its southern
bank
a chain of hills almost as difficult as Clinch
Mountain; so that great
difficulty arises to your petitioners - not only in
attending courts,
but
general musters and courts martial. And from the
extent of schasm
between
our small settlements make it
exceeding difficult to arrainge
companies
without subjecting some to travel fifteen or twenty
miles to private
musters,
and to difficulties in the militia law that
principally affect your
petitioners.
These are evils, small indeed, compared to the
feelings we constantly
undergo
when obliged to leave our helpless families exposed at
so very great
distance
to obey the laws of our country. And however evident
the may appear to
us, will not certainly on our failure of duty, plead
our excuse, a
circumstance
alone whereby sufficient to claim the honored respect
of the
Legislature
to remove the grievance.
We therefore pray
your
Honorable House will take our case into
consideration and divide the
county.
We further pray a line may be fixed along Clinch
Mountain with
Montgomery
line to the Carolina line; or with the line at
present dividing this
county
into two regiments to the aforesaid Carolina line;
thence with the said
line to Cumberland Mountain, including the extent of
county between
Cumberland
Mountain and Montgomery line, and Clinch Mountain as
the aforesaid
regimental
line, etc. for the new county; and southeast of the
said Clinch
Mountain
remain Washington County. And we, your petitioners
as in duty bound
will
ever pray, etc., etc.

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